Hamilton County SWCD Monthly Board Meeting are held the second Tuesday of every month at 2:00pm at the District office. The public is always welcome. 

The next scheduled Board meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 14, 2012 at 2:00pm.  These meetings are open to the public. Please arrive 10 minutes early if you wish to sign up to speak.

Call for more information, 772-7645.  

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It is not too early to start planning your Spring Garden

PLANNING FOR SPRING
LAWN AND GARDEN MAGNIFICO!!

When: February 23, and March 1, 2012 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Location: Hamilton County SWCD Office 22 Triangle Park Dr. ,   Cincinnati , OH 45246

Cost: $10.00 includes one soil fertility test kit per participant

Instructors: Holly Utrata-Halcomb, HCSWCD Administrator and Horticulturalist AND Jim Rosselot, Owner and Organic Farmer, West Chester Feed Barn  

Register by calling 772-7645 and sending your fee to Hamilton County SWCD

This class will help you to plan your best lawn and garden strategies so you will hit the ground running come spring! Soil fertility testing, turf management, annual flower and vegetable plant selection, design, preventative disease and pest control will all be covered in these two  2-hour classes.

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ATTENTION HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Caring for Our Watershed Contest

Are you a 9th through 12th grade student in Hamilton County? Do you want to win $ for yourself and your school? Do you care about your environment? Then this contest is for YOU!!!

The Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District, Environmental Education Council of Ohio and Agrium, Inc. invite you and your students to participate in the 2011-12 Caring for our Watersheds program (CFW). CFW is both an environmental proposal contest and a project funding opportunity for high school students.

CFW asks students to submit a proposal that answers the question, "What can I do to improve my watershed?" Students research their local watershed, identify an environmental concern and come up with a realistic solution.

 Ten finalists will present their ideas and win up to $1,000 cash rewards for themselves and matching rewards for their schools. Schools also receive $100 for every ten completed proposals submitted

 Students can work individually or in teams up to 4 members

 In addition to cash rewards, there is also $10,000 ($1000 per project) available for students to implement their projects.

 ALL Finalists are eligible for these "mini-grant" implementation funds.

CFW Important Dates

Entry Deadline Extended to Friday, March 23, 2012

Final Competition: Saturday, May 5, 2012

The attached document of "CFW How it works" has more information regarding the CFW contest. Visit www.caringforourwatersheds.com for more details. If you are interested, please contact gwen.roth@hamilton-co.org or 513-772-7645 x13.

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  Find Your Watershed!

There is a new resource that will help you identify and explore your watershed. The Regional Storm Water Collaborative (of which Hamilton County Storm Water District is a partner) has developed a tool located on the Project Earth website. 

Go to http://prjearth.squarespace.com/ watershed-tour/. Click on "Find Your Watershed" in the left hand column and enter your zip code to explore your watershed. Take the Watershed tour for an aerial view of the Great Miami Watershed. This website will also provide tips on how we all can save money and protect our watershed through our individual choices and actions.

A watershed is the area of land where all of the water drains off of it and flows to the nearest river, lake or stream. Watersheds come in all shapes and sizes. They cross counties, states and national boundaries. Did you know the bottom 2/3rds of Ohio drains to the Ohio River? In the continental US, there are 2,110 watersheds; including Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico, there are 2,268 watersheds.

Track and calculate how your conservation actions help the environment by going to http://www.GreenUmbrella.org

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 Recommended Websites 

The HCSWCD recommends two websites to help keep you informed about local and national environmental issues. 

The first site is sponsored by the Regional Storm Water Collaborative of SW Ohio and N. Kentucky. Go to www.savelocalwaters.org to find a full calendar of events and interesting articles on current events and topics. If you also go to Regional Storm Water Collaborative  on Facebook and like the page by January 31, 2012, your name will be entered into a drawing for a rain barrel!!

The second site is https://www.facebook.com/EPAWaterIsWorthIt Did you know that 2012 marks the 40th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act? 

Check these sites out!

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Presentations Available  Looking for an informative speaker for your  next meeting? The SWCD has several PowerPoint presentations on Soils, Storm Water, Water Quality, Soils, Erosion and Hillside Stability & Pond Management Call 772-7645 to schedule a program.